Media: multimedia

Inspiration: As I’ve grown up, I’ve found that it’s increasingly difficult to express creativity in my life. I feel like as younger kids we’re encouraged to think outside the box and have vibrant imaginations, but as we grow up, society expects us to grow more “serious” and conform to more structured expectations. In this piece, I sought to highlight how creativity is freedom from the pressures of society and the monotony of daily life. Furthermore, I wanted to show how pursuing and expressing creative ideas is an essential part of maintaining joy and balance in life.

Takeaway: I hope that a viewer will come away from the piece, which is based on childlike doodles, feeling like it’s okay to do things that might be seen as childish or to stray from “perfection”. When I was working on this piece, I did some things that I would typically consider mistakes, but instead of erasing or covering them, I used my mishaps to inspire new elements and create something more imaginative. As such, I hope the viewer takes away the idea that things don’t have to be perfect to be beautiful or to have purpose.

Erin Lavery, class of 2024, enjoys playing softball and basketball and loves to draw and spend time with animals in her free time.